Past Issues

Objectives: This study was aimed to develop a clinical ethical behavior scale
for psychiatrists as a tool for understanding the ethical behavior of practicing psychiatrists.
Methods: The preliminary scale was based on the American Psychiatric
Association’s Principles of Medical Ethics with Annotations Especially Applicable
to Psychiatry, and World Psychiatric Association’s Declaration of Madrid. The
scale consisted of two parts. The fi rst part covered basic information while the second
part comprised the clinical ethical behavior scale of psychiatrists. Results: Of
mailed 1,332 copies of revised pre-trial questionnaire, 150 copies of valid returns
were obtained, achieving a 11% valid response rate. The result of factor analysis
showed that explained variance of 56.35%. Cronbach's α of internal consistency
was 0.84, Pearson’s correlation coeffi cient for test-retest reliability of the total
score was 0.74, demonstrating its validity and reliability. Conclusion: From this
clinical ethical behavior scale, an offi cial version was developed. This clinical ethical
behavior scale for psychiatrists included 23 questions comprising four factors,
namely nonmalefi cence, autonomy, benefi cence, and justice.